When it comes to any lossy codec, bitrate is the most important parameter. The bit rate is usually measured in "bits per second" (bps), which is the number of bits transmitted in an audio stream per second. A higher bit rate means that an MP3 contains more information. An MP3 file at 128 kbps transmits 128,000 bits per second when played back. The higher the bitrate, the more information is played back and the higher the sound quality. There's no set value, it just depends on what you need, but most people won't notice a difference in quality after reaching 256 kbps.

1 Why would you want to change an MP3 bitrate?

I'm only aware of two reasons for changing the bitrate, and neither of them are particularly compelling.

The main reason is, of course, the reduction in file size. It's always tempting to fit more music into the player by transcoding at a lower bitrate. I think this approach is only really justified for voice recordings, not for music. Cutting the bitrate below 128 kbps makes a big impact on quality, and higher bitrates don't really help with size. If we do convert, we'll probably use a more modern format like AAC.

The second reason is combining two files with different bitrates into one. In principle, the MP3 format supports variable bitrate and simply combining such files together will not do anything bad. The only gain from recoding will be a more accurate representation of the length of the combined file. Is it worth it?

And please, don't increase the bitrate of MP3 files. Re-encoding will only make the file bigger, but the quality will stay the same or even get a little worse. The thing about lossy compression is that you can't get the original quality back.

2 What is needed to change the bitrate of MP3 file?

Good news! You won't need any specialized software to get this done. You can do this with almost any audio editor or converter. The main difference will be in how convenient it is and what additional features it offers. For instance, you can edit the sound in the editor, adjust the volume, or get rid of noise in the audio. The MP3 bitrate converter also lets you transcode all your files at once.

One proven tool for changing bitrate is Audio Converter. In addition to MP3, it supports most popular audio formats, so you may want to choose another option to reduce file size. Either way, you can reduce the MP3 size to send to a mobile device or as an email attachment.

3 Changing the bitrate step by step

I don't think that this operation will cause any difficulties for anyone, but just in case, I present the usual sequence of actions when converting audio files.

1. Download and install Audio Converter Plus from the link above. In principle, any other converter of your choice will do.
2. Launch Audio Converter Plus and add the MP3 files whose size you want to reduce.
3. Select the output folder and output format - MP3.
4. Now you need to decide on the bitrate. First, check the current bitrate in the file properties, then select a new value.
5. In the converter settings, select options to save ID3v2 tags and the original creation date of MP3 files.
6. Make sure you turn on the "Keep directory structure" option. Don't enable the "Convert to the same folder as the original file" option. If you do, the converter will replace the new files with the old ones because the file extension stays the same.
7. First, choose one file to convert. Listen to it and decide if you're happy with the sound quality. If not, go back to settings and select a higher bitrate.

4 Conclusion

What would I like to say finally? If I couldn't dissuade you from converting bitrates, then let me give you some advice - keep a backup copy and never overwrite old files. Changing the MP3 bitrate is irreversible and if some of the files sound too bad, then there is nothing you can do.

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